Candles&Roses: Boys, Basketball and 911
by nickersoncrazy
Summary: Ned tells Nancy how much he apparently 'likes' her. Along with dreams for the future, and Bess' REALLY crazy tactics to get a guy to notice her. Oneshot.


**Hiya people:) :)**

**Before I say anything else: SORRY about the title. If you have any ideas, PLEASE let me know :)**

**Well, I wanted to write something that wasn't full-on romance, for an change ( not that I'm tired of it; that could never happen ) so here's a story and I'm not sure what the genre should be under...probably lame/cruddy/dumb/stupid...just saying...lol :) So sorry if it's super cruddy, but like I said, I just wanted to try out something different :) So...yeah. With that said, please read and review...but at least TRY to be nice? **

**Oh wait, this story does have N/N stuff in case you're wondering :) And it falls around a month after 'Candles And Roses', but you're good to go even if you haven't read it :) Please R&R!!! Thank you :) :)**

**And Nancy and Ned and pretty much the whole ganag are WAY younger than in the canon.**

**Oh, and as for my other stories, this site isn't allowing me to update, not to mention that I've got MAJOR blocks on them ( PM me if you've got ideas? )**

**I'm gonna shut now :) I'll try, anyway :)**

**cheerio:) :)**

**nickersoncrazy :)**

* * *

"_You may now kiss your bride."_

_Nancy Drew looked adoringly into the eyes of her to-be husband. The rings had been exchanged; the only thing needed was for him to kiss her to make it official. To make her his wife. _

_She felt him take her hand gently in his, and his gesture brought back memories of years ago. Wonderful memories._

_They were just in high school when they had first met, and meeting him was one of the best things that had happened to her. And now, within moments, she would be married to her high school sweetheart – something she had dreamt about all through her teenage years._

_He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers, wrapping his arms around her waist. In response, she twined her arms around his neck._

_His loving gaze met her eyes as his arms tightened around her and pulled her closer to him._

"_I love you, Nan," he whispered. He'd said those words to her so many times, but not once had they lost their meaning. All it took was to hear him say those three mere words to make her so happy._

"_I love you, too," she said softly. "So much."_

_Her heart sped as his face moved closer to hers. His eyes closed, and she did likewise. She moved closer, closer…until their lips merely touched. But before Nancy could lose herself in the kiss, she heard ringing…_

_Church bells?_

_No…these sounded…annoying. _

Nancy's eyes opened all of a sudden. The ringing continued. She had just had the most wonderful dream ever, and she had been interrupted by her…stupid alarm.

She glared at it. "You have an awful sense of timing," she spat out. "I hate you. Just shut your…whatever."

"Good morning to you, too, honey," she heard a voice say suddenly.

Nancy turned around in bed, and saw her father standing over her. "Dad?"

"I've been trying to wake up for who knows how long…" Her father smiled. "When exactly were you planning to tell me that you were getting married?"

Nancy was horrified. "How – how did you know?"

Carson ruffled his daughter's hair affectionately. "You sleep-talk."

Nancy blushed, embarrassed. "Oh," she managed to say.

"So…" Carson sat down next to her. "Mind telling me who the victim was?"

"Uh…no one." She jumped up from bed, and tried to think of something to change the subject. "I…uh…gotta get ready for school, otherwise I'll be late, and my teachers will have a fit, and then at the…uh…next parent-teacher conference, you…um…might hear of some unnecessary things…and we wouldn't want that, would we…so…toodles, Dad!"

Carson raised an eyebrow at her. "You haven't answered my question," he pointed out. "I'm guessing that this guy is…Ned?"

Nancy blushed. "I…uh…sort of like him," she admitted.

Carson smiled. "Uh-huh."

Nancy shrugged. "I've always wanted…um…a brother, you know." She grinned wryly.

Her father laughed softly. "You really like him, don't you?"

Nancy smiled at him. "Isn't this usually Hannah's department?"

"Well, yeah," he answered slowly. "But I've got to butt in sometime, right?"

"Fair enough," Nancy replied. "And, yes, Ned is really…nice." _In addition to being cute, funny, charming, sweet, etc, etc, but you didn't ask for details, _she mentally added.

"I think so, too."

"Knowing you approve means a lot, Dad," she said. "Thanks."

Yeah, well, next time you get married, just be sure to let me know, okay?"

Nancy grinned. "Done."

--

"Remind me to hit my alarm with a hammer, and then throw it into the Atlantic, alright?" Nancy said to Bess, before school that day, ten minutes before homeroom.

"I cannot believe that you actually dreamt of getting married!" Bess exclaimed. "To Ned!"

George gave Nancy a sympathetic smile. "Don't worry, Nan," she said reassuringly and patted her on the shoulder. "Nightmares fade sooner or later."

Bess rolled her eyes. "Leave it to Ms. Burst-Your-Bubble to spoil a mood."

"You mean getting married is a _happy_ dream?"

Bess sighed. "Oh, George, you have so much to learn," she said dramatically. "But I'd be happy to teach you. Thirty bucks per hour, what say?" She grinned.

"As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll pass," George said. "I don't have to pay you to be taught how to act like an idiot."

Bess glared at her. "That's right," she replied tactfully. "You act like an idiot already."

"For your informa – " George began, but Bess cut her off.

"Oh, boyfriend-alert!" she said when she saw Ned walking toward them.

Nancy immediately stood up straight and tucked a strand of her hair behind a ear. "Hi, Ned," she said dreamily when he had come close.

"Hi, Nan," he replied, and blushed slightly.

"Hi, Ned!" Bess perked up, trying to get his attention, but backed off when Nancy gave her the don't-you-dare-flirt-with-my-boyfriend-or-you'll-be-dead-meat-glare.

Nancy blushed when Ned took her hand, and giggled. "Hi, Ned," she said again.

Ned smiled and squeezed her hand gently. "Hi, Nan."

George looked at them like they were crazy. "Is that all y'all are going to keep saying?"

"Oh, George, they're letting their hearts talk!" Bess said excitedly. "Isn't that sweet?"

"Yeah…diabetic-sweet," she answered.

Nancy looked embarrassed. "Would you mind…?"

Bess nodded. "Oh, sure," she said. "You two go on talking – we'll just listen."

Ned smiled wryly at Bess. "You are…something."

Bess' hand flew to her mouth. "Really?" She grinned. "Oh, you don't really have to compliment me."

George pulled Bess' arm. "First, that wasn't a compliment. Second, can't you tell they want us to leave?" She smiled at Nancy and Ned. "Don't worry – I'll take this little pest away," she said referring to Bess. "Bye."

"Bye, Ned!" Bess said over-enthusiastically. "Oh, you, too, Nan."

"So," Nancy said, when her friends were out of sight, although she was almost sure that Bess would be eavesdropping somewhere. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Ned replied and smiled at her. "Listen, I just want to tell you something."

Nancy smiled as she felt his fingers lace through hers. "Yeah?"

"Um…I…I…well…I sort of…" He trailed off when the bell rang. "Never mind," he mumbled. "I'll talk to you later."

"What is it with this stupid ringing today?" Nancy mumbled to herself.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing." She wasn't about to tell him that in dreamland, she was already Nancy Nickerson. "So, I'll see you around?"

"Yeah," Ned said, and unexpectedly pulled her into a hug. "You're really…special, you know?" But he cut off her reply by kissing her gently. "You're really something else," he said after pulling away gently.

Nancy grinned. "Like Bess?"

"Uh…no," he answered. "That girl is…"

"Weird?"

"How did you know I was going to say that?"

Nancy laughed. "Great people think alike, huh?"

"Yeah," Ned replied. "Well, Nan, I'd love to stay and chat, except that we're the only people in the hallway, and…I don't think that's good."

"Oh, right, bye!"

Ned smiled. "See you." They ran off in separate directions to their classes.

--

"So, I was watching the match last night," George said to Nancy during lunch later that day. "And we were so close to winning, but – "

"Hi, guys!" Bess appeared suddenly.

"Great," George muttered. "End of sport-talk, beginning of boy-talk."

Bess ignored her. "So, Nan, how are you and lover-boy doing?"

Nancy grinned. "Okay," she answered. "And speaking of, did I tell you that Ned text messaged me last night?"

"So?" George asked.

"Yeah," Bess added. "Even _I_ don't get it. And I'm supposed to be the hopeless romantic."

"Oh, you're hopeless, alright," George muttered.

"No," Nancy said impatiently. "He added a little _heart_ icon to the end of the message," she said excitedly. "You know what that means?"

"Uh…the boy was bored to death?" George supplied.

"No, you idiot!" Bess exclaimed. "It means he's taking this whole relationship seriously." She gasped as she realized something else. "Oh my gosh, it means he _loves_ you, Nan!"

Nancy blushed helplessly. "I don't think we're at that stage yet."

"Trust me. That dream you had last night is so coming true," Bess said certainly.

Suddenly George waved at someone across the room.

"Who was that?" Bess asked.

"Chris," she answered to the point.

Bess gasped excitedly. "Chris Wilkins? You know _Chris Wilkins_ a.k.a. the second cutest guy in the history of cutest guys?"

"Yeah," George answered. "We shoot a few hoops together sometimes."

Bess frowned in confusion. "You play archery?"

George rolled her eyes. "By 'shooting hoops' I mean basketball, you blockhead."

"Hey, I though shooting meant archery," she replied defensively.

George raised an eyebrow at her. "You also thought people in the Southern Hemisphere walked upside down."

Bess turned as red as a tomato. "Hey, I was six years old – let it go!" She frowned. "You are _so_ annoying. Go back to the planet you came from."

"I – " George started to say, but Bess interrupted once again.

"Hey, Nancy, speaking of planets, wouldn't it be cool if aliens were really cute?"

Nancy shook her head, bemused. "Bess, I am amazed at how your mind works."

"Yeah," George put in. "It freaks me out. But you know what, you're right. It would be nice if aliens were cute."

Bess choked on the food she was eating. "What?? Are you some nice cloned version of my irritating cousin? Did you just say what I heard?"

George smiled. "Hey, if you fall in love with an alien, you'll get married and move out of the planet! That would be a dream come true."

Bess glared at her cousin. "Just when you thought the world's a better place – BAM – she's back!!"

Nancy giggled. "Can we change the subject?"

"Yeah," George said eagerly. "Let's talk about what kind of astronaut suits we're going to wear at Bess' wedding!! See, Bess? I can talk about clothes!"

"That so wasn't funny," Bess said. "Besides," she added nonchalantly, "I don't think Armani designs astronaut suits."

"Give it a rest, will you?" Nancy said.

"Alright, where were we?" Bess said thoughtfully. "Oh yeah, Chris," she remembered and turned to George. "Will you be playing basketball with him today?"

George looked at her suspiciously. "Yeah…why?"

Bess grinned mischievously. "Oh, nothing. I just plan on making myself known, that's all."

"Don't do anything idiotic," George warned.

Bess rolled her eyes at her. "Have you known me to have _ever_ done _anything_ idiotic?" she asked her friends.

"YES!" they both said together.

--

Bess walked into the gym after school, literally holding her nose. _Well, it will be worth it_, she said to herself. She saw George and Chris inside.

"Hi guys!" she said cheerfully.

George gasped and turned around. "What the blinking hell are you doing here?"

Bess looked at Chris and almost melted against a wall. "Sightseeing," she said dreamily.

"Did you lose your way going to the mall again?" George asked.

"No, silly," she said, and smiled flirtatiously at Chris. "Hi, I'm Bess. I'm the one who taught George how to play basketball."

"Come again?" George cried, in disbelief.

Chris smiled at Bess. "You must be good then. I'm Chris."

Bess smiled. _Don't I know? _"Oh, I'm terrific – even if do say so myself. Hand me the ball, George."

"This should be fun," George muttered, and threw the ball at her.

"Hey!" Bess said excitedly. " Oh my God! I actually caught it!"

Chris gave her a weird look.

"I mean – of course I caught it – I'm a pro," she amended.

"Would you be kind enough to demonstrate?" George asked sweetly.

"Uh…demonstrate?" Bess laughed nervously. "I …uh…don't like making people jealous, you know."

"No, please, show us," Chris said eagerly.

"Okaaaaay…if you insist."

"Wait!" George said. "We've got to talk some precautions first. Chris, move far away from her, and put 911 on speed dial."

"Um…here goes nothing," Bess said. "I hope." She raised the ball, took a deep breath, and threw it as hard as she could, forcefully. With so much force, that it went backward.

"Wow, girl!" George teased sarcastically. "You've got skill!"

Chris tried to smile. "That was…that was…interesting."

"Oh, _puh-_lease," Bess began. "I did that on purpose. You really don't think I'd give away the secrets of the art, do you?"

George threw the ball at her again, and it gave Bess an idea. The perfect time to put her drama skills to use.

She groaned mournfully. "Oh, George...that ball hit me...ouch."

"Oh, you poor thing, did you break a nail?" George rolled her eyes, knowing what this would lead to.

"No..." Bess groaned again. "I think...I think...I'm going to pass out." She put an arm over her forehead and fell dramatically to the ground.

"Uh...are you okay?" Chris asked, worriedly.

"Everything seems so...green...no...blue...is that orange?" Bess tried to sit up, and pretended to fall back. "I'm losing sight."

"Chris," George spoke up, "Meet my cousin -- the one who will do _anything _to get a guy's attention."

"What...? I can't...I can't hear..."

"Should I get help?" Chris asked.

"I think I might need CPR," Bess said painfully, and looked hopefully at Chris.

"I think you might need to GET. A. LIFE!!!" George said.

"Why are you...standing on your...head...?

"Uh...this is...scary," Chris said.

George rolled her eyes. "Tell me about it."

"George...if I don't make it..." she swallowed painfully. "You can have all my clothes."

"You mean all the flowery skirts and stuff? Ugh, no thanks!"

"And...and...give all my shoes to Nancy." She suddenly gasped loudly, pretending to find it difficult to breathe. "Oh, except the new ones I got last week. Don't you even dare touch that!"

"Anything else, drama queen?"

"Call 911," she said dramatically.

"Okay," Chris said and took out his cell phone.

"Are you an _idiot_?" George asked him. "Don't tell me you're falling for that."

"George...tell Mom and Dad I said..." she paused for dramatic effect, "...goodbye..."

"Um...I'm gonna go...uh...do something," Chris said and ran off.

"He's gone, Bess," George informed. "You can quit your dying-act now."

Bess frowned and sat up. "He freaked out," she said thoughtfully.

"Ya think?"

Bess frowned again. "Now I'll never name my future son Chris. Jr."

"Oh, don't worry," George said soothingly. "There are a lot of other Chrises in the world."

Bess sighed. "Oh well, other than that, did you like my performance?"

"Yeah," George answered. "I wish I had an Oscar award right now."

"Aww...so you'd give it to me?" Bess asked. "That's really sweet. Would you like an autograph in return?"

"Uh...no." George shook her head. "I wish I had an Oscar to hit you on the head with."

--

"Tell me again what we're doing outside the school building and why you want to climb up on my back."

Bess sighed impatiently. "I want to spy on Nancy and Ned," she explained. "They said they were going to 'study' in the library."

"And why can't you just walk into the library?"

"Because I lost a book, and you know how much that librarian loves her books. She'd freak if I told her."

George felt like throttling her cousin. "Why can't you give Nancy her own privacy?"

"Because I'm her best friend and I have the right to know what happens in her love life," she answered. "It's like that fundamental right of all best friends. Now get on your fours, so I can climb up on you, okay?"

"Let me check if I've got life insurance first."

"Oh, just shut up and do it, will you?"

George glared at her and bent down. "Ouch," she said when Bess tried to climb on her.

"Am I too heavy?"

" Oh, no," George answered sarcastically. "You're as light as an elephant carrying another elephant."

"And you're as weak as a bamboo stick!" Bess shot back. "Now hold still."

"Yes, ma'am."

Bess stood on her tiptoes and peered in through the window. "I can't see," she complained. "Will you try standing up, George?"

"I plan on having a long life, Bess," she retorted.

"Just do it!" Bess ordered.

--

Nancy smiled at Ned. They had been in the library for the past half an hour, and they hadn't even cracked their books open. And she was loving every moment of being alone with him.

"Hey, you wanted to tell me something, remember?" she said suddenly.

"Oh...yeah."

"So...shoot."

"I just wanted to say that...well...I...uh...kind of...sort of..."

"What?"

"I sort of... really like you, Nan," he said softly.

Nancy beamed. "I really like you, too, Ned."

"No, I mean, I like you more than like-like."

Nancy laughed. "Like-like?"

Ned looked down, embarrassed. "You know what I mean...I just don't really know how to say it."

Nancy blushed. "Well...there _is_ one way."

"I know," Ned said softly, and reached for her hand. "I sort of...kind of...uh...um...love you, Nan."

She blushed again like never before. "Wow...I sort of, kind of, really love you, too." She looked away shyly, then smiled. "You know what, that's the first time I've ever said that to a guy. Oh my God, I feel so grown up! Yay!"

Ned grinned. "Yeah...you act like it, too." He leaned forward and gently tapped his finger on her nose. "But that's just how I love you," he whispered. He quickly looked around to see if anyone was watching, and then pulled her into his arms and kissed her softly. "Just the way you are."

--

"They're holding hands," Bess informed and frowned. "If this is what is called studying, then all of a sudden, I love it."

"Please. Get. Off. My. Shoulders."

Bess ignored her. "He's telling her something, George," she said excitedly. "And it looks serious!"

"And I will_ seriously_ kill you if you keep jumping up and down like a kangaroo!"

Bess gasped loudly. "GEORGE! He's telling her that he LOVES her!" She gasped again.

"Oh, so now you're a kangaroo, that's as heavy as an elephant, with ears like a bat?" George grinned humourlessly. "What do they call you? A kelebat?"

"I can lip read, you idiot!" She turned her attention back to the window. "Now SHE is telling him that she loves him!" She impatiently brushed a strand of her strawberry-blonde hair out of her eyes. "Now they are KISSING!!!!"

"STOP MOVING!!!"

"Oh God -- they're kissing!!" she repeated, and in all the excitement, lost her balance.

George drew in an unsteady breath. "Bess -- Bess -- please don't fall -- I'm begging --"

"AGGH!" Bess screamed, and both of them, fell hard to the cemented ground.

"Get OFF me King Kong!!" George shouted, and pushed Bess away.

"Sorry," Bess mumbled, and groaned. "Will someone call 911?"

* * *

**Alright...that wasn't exactly the story I had in mind...but anyway...please let me know what you thought of it, yeah?**

**nickersoncrazy :)  
**


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